Noob cleaning question for rifles

[hexum77]

Is it OK to clean from the muzzle end of the breech end only? I'm not too sure if I'll get all the spots in the bore clean if I just clean on the breech end going through ONE time only? I.E. pushing it through to the muzzle, removing the patch, taking the rod out and redoing it. Will that get it all clean or do I need to add another patch after I push it through the muzzle before bringing the rod back through? I just don't want to damage my yugo m48 so this is why I'm asking! Some people say not to clean from the muzzle end but I'm not sure if it's not to damage the tip of the gun or it's because you don't want to put patches/brushes through going towards the action (Pulling patches through from the muzzle end while pulling the rod from the breech). Sorry if this is confusing! Uber noob here

 

[Shadow 7D]

Ok, the polite answer is that you should travel the way the bullet does
that said, I've scrubbed them from every angle, HOWEVER
nicking and dinging the crown (the end of the rifling at the muzzle) will negatively effect accuracy.

Oh, and it keeps oil out of the stock, which can damage a wood stock

 

[NeuseRvrRat]

always clean from the breech end unless the action just doesn't allow it. it will clean just fine. use a bore guide no matter which end you clean from. this will protect your chamber when cleaning from the breech and a muzzle guide will protect the crown when you have to clean from the muzzle.

more barrels have been ruined by improper cleaning than were ruined by not cleaning at all.

 

[MrCleanOK]

Cleaning from the muzzle is generally advised against because it increases the chances of damaging the crown of the rifle, which will have a negative impact on accuracy. Some rifles (ex., Ruger 10/22) are difficult to clean from the breech by way of their design. There is a lot to cleaning a bore, but the basics are to keep running patches through, from the muzzle, until they come out clean. One patch will generally not do it.

 

[Shadow 7D]

Or just use a Otis pull through or a bore snake

 

[hexum77]

Cool. Thanks guys. Hard to find to hard exact answers for questions I need answering.

 

[WayBeau]

Are you running any kind of brushes through it? Forgive me if you know this all ready, but a brush will loosen the 'crud' that's in your bore and make the work of patches much easier. I would definitely recommend AGAINST passing a brush from the muzzle end.

+1 on the bore guide, and/or muzzle guide.

 

[SimplyChad]

Welcome to the addiction. Hopefully your hooked

 

[hexum77]

Way - yup I plan on picking up some nylon brushes. The copper one I have seems to leave behind copper residue and makes cleaning the bore just that much longer. I shoot corrosive so I pretty much need one haha. GOign to the local gun store soon to get some bore foam that's aggressive on the copper fouling (I have a lot for some reason, even though I've only shot it a few times), a bore guide, a bore snake (maybe), and some nylon brushes. Oh and some new bore solvent.

Question though, for corrosive ammo and cleaning it, should I use water first down the bore to flush out the corrosive salts, then clean normally, then use more water to remove any of those salts that were covered by the regular crud from the ammo, or does the water penetrate through the regular ammo residue to get all the salts at once when I first pour water down? Thanks!

 

[Sin City Shootist]

I know longer use brushes on my rifles. Dewey jags, Parker Hale style with chemicals. Clean breech to muzzle and the otis cable systems are great for those guns you can't get a rod down through the breech.

 

[LoonWulf]

Hex, that copper residue your seeing, is likely from the bullet jackets not the brush. I normally run a copper brush thru a couple times, then go to wet patches till they come out clean. For serious cleanings, ie very rarely, ill use my home made electronic bore cleaner.

 

[Powderman]

What kind of rifle are you shooting? I have done experimentation with my 91/30, shooting corrosive 7.62x54R. I have found that Hoppe's will clean all of the corrosive residue from the bore. If you don't have any, then a couple of patches with soapy water through the bore will take care of the problem. Afterward, clean it as normal.

 

[hexum77]

Well my patches keep coming out blue; not black or anything like that but blue. From what I read, solvent patches adn the dry ones afterwards turn blue if there's copper fouling it's getting. One problem I'm having is that I keep going through ridiculous amounts of patches. The blue won't stop! I've only shot the yugo m48 3 times for a total of about 180 rounds

 

[BADUNAME37]

I find cleaning from the muzzle (with the rifle secured enough so it doesn't fall onto the concrete floor) works best for me.

Carefully push a CLEAN, wiped rod in from the muzzle. Be careful to not hit the lands at the muzzle. When the rod, with nothing attached, arrives at the breech, with bolt removed, I screw on a plastic slotted patch jag with solvent on the patch.

I carefully pull the rod from the muzzle, being careful to not scrape the inside of the muzzle at any time.

When the dirty patch comes out of the muzzle, I remove it and wipe the rod clean. Carefully insert rifle again, through the muzzle and out the breech. Again, put another solvent-laden patch on, or if you think the muzzle is wet enough, let it sit for ten to fifteen minutes, then pull another patch through. If the patches are cruddy, do the same thing, but with a brush.

Each time I am pulling the rod, I am carefully turning it counterclockwise for rifling that has a right twist. You can feel the rod turning as the patch, brush, etc is riding in the grooves.

Continue carefully doing this until the patches are coming nearly clean. Then run several dry patches through and then pull one through that has had some gun oil, Break Free, etc. on it. I typically pull the oiled patch through several times just to be sure the muzzle is wetted, but NOT to the point of dripping-wet!

When I am cleaning a shotgun with an internal bolt, I do the exact same thing, from the muzzle. I am careful to not let the rod contact the muzzle at any time and I wipe the rod clean before every insertion.

 

[Mauser lover]

Can't you just take the bolt out and insert a rod from the breech without worrying about damaging the muzzle when you insert a rod without a patch on it?

If you are using a slotted patch holder end on your cleaning rod, I would stop using that tip. Spear point jags work much better in my experience.

Gunslick foaming bore cleaner works pretty well on copper fouling. That is what I use when I clean my Mauser after shooting corrosive FMJs. After two doses of that gunslick stuff, I follow it with Hoppe's number nine. It doesn't take too many patches if I use the Gunslick. If I just use Hoppe's, it takes upwards of 35 patches, sometimes more.

 

[briansmithwins]

I agree that if you can, cleaning from the breech to muzzle is better. If you can't, a pull-through works as a alternative to a solid rod.

As far as corrosive ammo goes, I've shot several thousand rounds of Yugo M67, which is corrosive.

I use soapy water to clean any areas of powder fouling, dry, and then oil. I prefer to clean while the rifle is still warm, since I've seen rust spots within 45 minutes of stopping firing.

As far as brushes go, I just do not worry about copper fouling too much. I mostly do a couple passes with a soft nylon brush wet with solvent followed by a tight fitting patch. Another run with solvent is let set in the bore while I clean the rest of the rifle. Tight patch to dry and then a loose oiled patch.

BSW

 

[hexum77]

Excellent responses guys. Your information is helping quite a bit. Would you guys Recommend a bore guide when cleaning breech to muzzle or can I hold off on it if I'm careful? Also, what exactly does it do? Just keep the rod from hitting the crown when pushing through?

 

[Mauser lover]

I do not use one, but I am really careful. If you do not feel that you need one when cleaning breech to muzzle, don't bother getting one yet. However if you ever clean something from muzzle to breech with a hard rod, you should get one. I use a crown protector when I clean that direction. I wouldn't worry about it if you have a flexible cleaning system.